Monday, May 24, 2004

School fatigue

Is summer vacation here yet? I'm as eager for time off as any schoolkid. Mostly because I feel like a schoolkid with the amount of homework help I'm having to provide lately. My daughter's coming home with so much stuff to do each evening that I've abandoned the pretense of having her try it herself first and am just giving her answers, lest homework time stretch past midnight. It's starting to seem as though her teachers are realizing they didn't get quite far enough through the curriculum, and so they're going to do a few months' worth in the last weeks of school. And I say, enough! Bring on the break! Even though summer brings with it changes in routine that can make my son misbehave; changes in drop-offs and pick-ups that play havoc with my work schedule; costly camps and new people to indoctrinate into our behavior management schemes; even with all the upheaval, it's going to be better than having to lead a learning disabled girl through fifteen questions on three hard short stories in one evening. Plus studying for three tests. Plus filling out two study guides and a few worksheets for good measure. Enough, I say! I already graduated sixth grade once; it's time to be done with it again.

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About My Family

My husband and I adopted two children from Russia in 1994: a 4.5-year-old girl with language delays and a 21-month-old boy with fetal alcohol effects. They're 26 and 23 now, and we're all surviving nicely.

Expand Your Advocacy

50 Ways to Support Your Child's Special Education looks at all those things you can do outside of those annual IEP meetings to promote success -- from getting a better start in the morning to helping with homework to communicating with the school. Parents have the power to make a difference, and I've got some great ideas on how to do that. Ask for the book at your local bookstore, or buy it online from Amazon or Barnes & Noble.